AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars facts for kids
| 1998 | 100 Movies |
|---|---|
| 1999 | 100 Stars |
| 2000 | 100 Laughs |
| 2001 | 100 Thrills |
| 2002 | 100 Passions |
| 2003 | 100 Heroes & Villains |
| 2004 | 100 Songs |
| 2005 | 100 Movie Quotes |
| 2005 | 25 Scores |
| 2006 | 100 Cheers |
| 2006 | 25 Musicals |
| 2007 | 100 Movies (Updated) |
| 2008 | AFI's 10 Top 10 |
AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars is a special list created by the American Film Institute. It ranks the top 25 male and 25 female movie stars from American film history. This list is the second one in the AFI 100 Years... series.
The list was first shown on a TV show on June 15, 1999. Shirley Temple, a famous actress who is also on the list, hosted the show. Fifty actors from that time helped present the awards.
A "screen legend" is defined by AFI as an actor who had a big impact in American movies that were 40 minutes or longer. Their first movie had to be made by 1950, or if they started after 1950, their career had to be finished (meaning they had passed away). This means the list mostly celebrates actors from the classic Hollywood era. Experts chose the final 50 stars from a much larger list of 250 male and 250 female nominees.
Most of the male stars (21 of them) were born in the United States. The others were Charlie Chaplin, Laurence Olivier, and Cary Grant, who were born in the United Kingdom. Edward G. Robinson was born in Romania.
For the female stars, 16 were born in the United States. The other nine came from different countries: Vivien Leigh from India, Elizabeth Taylor from the United Kingdom, Audrey Hepburn from Belgium, Mary Pickford from Canada, Marlene Dietrich from Germany, Sophia Loren from Italy, Claudette Colbert from France, and Ingrid Bergman and Greta Garbo from Sweden.
When the list was first made, several stars were still alive. These included Gregory Peck, Katharine Hepburn, Marlon Brando, Elizabeth Taylor, Shirley Temple, Lauren Bacall, Kirk Douglas, and Sidney Poitier. All of them have since passed away. Today, Sophia Loren is the only star from both lists who is still living.
Discover the Top 50 Movie Stars
This section shows the top 25 male and top 25 female screen legends. You'll see their names, when they lived, a picture, and some of their most famous movies. It also mentions if they won an Academy Award (also known as an Oscar).
| No. | Male Legends | Female Legends | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Humphrey Bogart
(1899–1957) |
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Famous for:
Casablanca (1942) The Maltese Falcon (1941) The African Queen (1951) He won an Oscar for The African Queen. |
Katharine Hepburn
(1907–2003) |
 |
Famous for:
The Philadelphia Story (1940) The African Queen (1951) Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) She won four Oscars, including for Morning Glory and On Golden Pond. |
| 2 | Cary Grant
(1904–1986) |
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Famous for:
Bringing Up Baby (1938) His Girl Friday (1940) North by Northwest (1959) He received an honorary Oscar in 1969. |
Bette Davis
(1908–1989) |
 |
Famous for:
Jezebel (1938) Dark Victory (1939) All About Eve (1950) She won two Oscars, for Dangerous and Jezebel. |
| 3 | James Stewart
(1908–1997) |
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Famous for:
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) It's a Wonderful Life (1946) Vertigo (1958) He won an Oscar for The Philadelphia Story. |
Audrey Hepburn
(1929–1993) |
 |
Famous for:
Roman Holiday (1953) Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) My Fair Lady (1964) She won an Oscar for Roman Holiday. |
| 4 | Marlon Brando
(1924–2004) |
 |
Famous for:
On the Waterfront (1954) The Godfather (1972) Apocalypse Now (1979) He won two Oscars, for On the Waterfront and The Godfather. |
Ingrid Bergman
(1915–1982) |
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Famous for:
Casablanca (1942) Gaslight (1944) Murder on the Orient Express (1974) She won three Oscars, including for Gaslight and Anastasia. |
| 5 | Fred Astaire
(1899–1987) |
 |
Famous for:
Dancing in movies with Ginger Rogers, like Top Hat (1935) Swing Time (1936) Easter Parade (1948) He received an honorary Oscar in 1949. |
Greta Garbo
(1905–1990) |
 |
Famous for:
Grand Hotel (1932) Queen Christina (1933) Ninotchka (1939) She received an honorary Oscar in 1954. |
| 6 | Henry Fonda
(1905–1982) |
 |
Famous for:
The Grapes of Wrath (1940) 12 Angry Men (1957) On Golden Pond (1981) He won an Oscar for On Golden Pond. |
Marilyn Monroe
(1926–1962) |
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Famous for:
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) The Seven Year Itch (1955) Some Like It Hot (1959) |
| 7 | Clark Gable
(1901–1960) |
 |
Famous for:
It Happened One Night (1934) Mutiny on the Bounty (1935) Gone with the Wind (1939) He won an Oscar for It Happened One Night. |
Dame Elizabeth Taylor
(1932–2011) |
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Famous for:
National Velvet (1944) Cleopatra (1963) Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) She won two Oscars, for BUtterfield 8 and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?. |
| 8 | James Cagney
(1899–1986) |
 |
Famous for:
The Public Enemy (1931) Angels with Dirty Faces (1938) Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) He won an Oscar for Yankee Doodle Dandy. |
Judy Garland
(1922–1969) |
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Famous for:
The Wizard of Oz (1939) Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) A Star Is Born (1954) She received a special Oscar for young performers in 1939. |
| 9 | Spencer Tracy
(1900–1967) |
 |
Famous for:
Captains Courageous (1937) Boys Town (1938) Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) He won two Oscars, for Captains Courageous and Boys Town. |
Marlene Dietrich
(1901–1992) |
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Famous for:
The Blue Angel (1930) Shanghai Express (1932) Destry Rides Again (1939) |
| 10 | Charlie Chaplin
(1889–1977) |
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Famous for:
His character The Tramp Silent films like The Gold Rush (1925) and City Lights (1931) Modern Times (1936) He received several honorary Oscars. |
Joan Crawford
(190? – 1977) |
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Famous for:
Grand Hotel (1932) The Women (1939) Mildred Pierce (1945) She won an Oscar for Mildred Pierce. |
| 11 | Gary Cooper
(1901–1961) |
 |
Famous for:
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936) Sergeant York (1941) High Noon (1952) He won two Oscars, for Sergeant York and High Noon. |
Barbara Stanwyck
(1907–1990) |
 |
Famous for:
The Lady Eve (1941) Double Indemnity (1944) Sorry, Wrong Number (1948) She received an honorary Oscar in 1981. |
| 12 | Gregory Peck
(1916–2003) |
 |
Famous for:
Spellbound (1945) The Guns of Navarone (1961) To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) He won an Oscar for To Kill a Mockingbird. |
Claudette Colbert
(1903–1996) |
 |
Famous for:
It Happened One Night (1934) Cleopatra (1934) Since You Went Away (1944) She won an Oscar for It Happened One Night. |
| 13 | John Wayne
(1907–1979) |
 |
Famous for:
Westerns like Stagecoach (1939) The Searchers (1956) True Grit (1969) He won an Oscar for True Grit. |
Grace Kelly
(1929–1982) |
 |
Famous for:
High Noon (1952) Rear Window (1954) To Catch a Thief (1955) She won an Oscar for The Country Girl. |
| 14 | Laurence Olivier
(1907–1989) |
 |
Famous for:
Rebecca (1940) Hamlet (1948) Marathon Man (1976) He won an Oscar for Hamlet. |
Ginger Rogers
(1911–1995) |
 |
Famous for:
Dancing with Fred Astaire in movies like Top Hat (1935) Swing Time (1936) Kitty Foyle (1940) She won an Oscar for Kitty Foyle. |
| 15 | Gene Kelly
(1912–1996) |
 |
Famous for:
Dancing in musicals like An American in Paris (1951) Singin' in the Rain (1952) Xanadu (1980) He received an honorary Oscar in 1951. |
Mae West
(1893–1980) |
 |
Famous for:
Her witty lines and roles in She Done Him Wrong (1933) I'm No Angel (1933) My Little Chickadee (1940) |
| 16 | Orson Welles
(1915–1985) |
 |
Famous for:
Directing and starring in Citizen Kane (1941) The Third Man (1949) Touch of Evil (1958) He won an Oscar for writing Citizen Kane. |
Vivien Leigh
(1913–1967) |
 |
Famous for:
Gone with the Wind (1939) A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) She won two Oscars, for Gone with the Wind and A Streetcar Named Desire. |
| 17 | Kirk Douglas
(1916–2020) |
 |
Famous for:
Champion (1949) 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954) Spartacus (1960) He received an honorary Oscar in 1995. |
Lillian Gish
(1893–1993) |
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Famous for:
Silent films like The Birth of a Nation (1915) Broken Blossoms (1919) The Night of the Hunter (1955) She received an honorary Oscar in 1970. |
| 18 | James Dean
(1931–1955) |
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Famous for:
Rebel Without a Cause (1955) East of Eden (1955) Giant (1956) He was nominated for two Oscars. |
Shirley Temple
(1928–2014) |
 |
Famous for:
Being a child star in movies like Bright Eyes (1934) The Little Princess (1939) She received a special Oscar for young performers in 1934. |
| 19 | Burt Lancaster
(1913–1994) |
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Famous for:
From Here to Eternity (1953) Elmer Gantry (1960) Birdman of Alcatraz (1962) He won an Oscar for Elmer Gantry. |
Rita Hayworth
(1918–1987) |
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Famous for:
Cover Girl (1944) Gilda (1946) The Lady from Shanghai (1947) |
| 20 | Marx Brothers |  |
Famous for:
Their comedy films like Duck Soup (1933) A Night at the Opera (1935) A Day at the Races (1937) Groucho received an honorary Oscar for the group's work. |
Lauren Bacall
(1924–2014) |
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Famous for:
To Have and Have Not (1944) The Big Sleep (1946) Key Largo (1948) She received an honorary Oscar in 2009. |
| 21 | Buster Keaton
(1895–1966) |
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Famous for:
His "Great Stone Face" and silent comedies like Sherlock Jr. (1924) The General (1926) The Cameraman (1928) He received an honorary Oscar in 1959. |
Sophia Loren
(born 1934) |
 |
Famous for:
Two Women (1961) El Cid (1961) Marriage Italian Style (1964) She won an Oscar for Two Women and an honorary Oscar in 1990. |
| 22 | Sidney Poitier
(1927–2022) |
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Famous for:
The Defiant Ones (1958) Lilies of the Field (1963) In the Heat of the Night (1967) He won an Oscar for Lilies of the Field. |
Jean Harlow
(1911–1937) |
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Famous for:
Hell's Angels (1930) Red Dust (1932) Dinner at Eight (1933) |
| 23 | Robert Mitchum
(1917–1997) |
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Famous for:
Out of the Past (1947) The Night of the Hunter (1955) Cape Fear (1962) |
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| 24 | Edward G. Robinson
(1893–1973) |
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Famous for:
Little Caesar (1931) Double Indemnity (1944) The Ten Commandments (1956) He received an honorary Oscar in 1972. |
Mary Pickford
(1892–1979) |
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Famous for:
Being a silent film star, known as "America's Sweetheart" Pollyanna (1920) Coquette (1929) She won an Oscar for Coquette. |
| 25 | William Holden
(1918–1981) |
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Famous for:
Sunset Boulevard (1950) Stalag 17 (1953) The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) He won an Oscar for Stalag 17. |
Ava Gardner
(1922–1990) |
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Famous for:
The Killers (1946) Show Boat (1951) Mogambo (1953) |
More About the Nominees
The 50 movie legends were chosen from a much bigger list of 250 male and 250 female actors.
As of January 2022, all the male stars and nominees on the list have passed away. However, one female legend, Sophia Loren, is still alive at 88 years old. Also, six other female nominees are still living: Ann Blyth (94), Claire Bloom (92), Mitzi Gaynor (91), Rita Moreno (91), Piper Laurie (91), and Margaret O'Brien (86). The most recent nominee to pass away was Gina Lollobrigida in January 2023, at age 95.
Images for kids
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Carole Lombard
See also
In Spanish: Anexo:AFI's 100 años... 100 estrellas para niños
